


A Rose in Twilight

by LastCorsair



Category: RWBY
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-05
Updated: 2020-09-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:08:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,055
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26293909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LastCorsair/pseuds/LastCorsair
Summary: Ruby confesses her feelings for Weiss. It doesn't go well.
Relationships: Ruby Rose/Weiss Schnee
Kudos: 46





	A Rose in Twilight

**Author's Note:**

> I was trying something different here, and it didn't come off well. Live and learn,

" _I'm sorry, Ruby, but I can't."_

Yang was going nuts. Her too-young-to-be-attending-Beacon and _way_ -too-young-to-be-team-leader little sister Ruby was up in their dorm room, bawling her eyes out, and all Yang had gotten out of her when she asked was a glare that would have laid waste to large cities before Ruby collapsed back on the bed, sobbing again. Yang's big-sister instincts were kicking in, hardcore. She wanted to hug Ruby and tell her everything would be alright, and then go beat whatever had made her sister cry within an inch of its miserable existence, assuming that was possible.

Problem was, Ruby wasn't talking, so Yang didn't have a clue where to start. She'd already run Blake to ground, and the cat-eared girl hadn't seen Ruby since breakfast. The ice queen had been missing for about the same length of time, so that gave Yang a clue. Weiss wasn't in their room (obviously) which meant it was time to move on to her favorite spot on campus: The library. Yang suppressed a shudder as she stepped through the door. Not from a general dislike of the place, but because it reminded her of a paper that was due next week for Doctor Oobleck's history course. Blech.

She finally found Weiss holed up in one of the private study rooms. Something made Yang stop and take a good look at Weiss before she said anything. Yeah, all was not right in Schnee-land. She wasn't really reading the book in front of her, for one. Or taking notes in the notebook spread out under her left hand. Every few seconds, Weiss would pick up the pen, her right hand tracing a passage, then set it back down, and her head hanging down again until she repeated the cycle.

After watching the loop a half-dozen times, Yang decided it was time to make her move and knocked gently on the study room door. "Hey, Weiss, you alright?"

Weiss jumped like somebody had hit her with a stun wand. "I'm fine, Yang," she snapped, busying herself with the book she was barely paying attention to again.

Yeah, nope. Yang had been around Weiss enough to know that 'I'm fine' was Weiss-code for 'I'm miserable, now go away.' "Not buying it. Ruby's up in our dorm room, crying, and here you are, looking more miserable than I've ever seen you. Including the time your dad hauled you back to Atlas for three-day weekend just because he could. Something happen between the two of you?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"So _something_ did happen." Yang sat down next to Weiss, putting a hand gently on her shoulder. "Listen, if you need somebody to talk to, or a shoulder to cry on, I'm here. But I'm gonna warn you, Ruby's my baby sister, so I gotta place her first. Now spill."

"Are you deaf as well as stupid?" Weiss snapped again, though there was little anger behind it. "I said I was fine and I didn't want to talk about it."

"You're not fine, you're miserable, and you need to vent at somebody. Maybe even hit something, that always works for me."

"I'm not you, Yang." Weiss leaned back in the chair and stared at the ceiling with a heavy sigh. "Fine. I will tell you, but you have to promise to keep this in strictest confidence."

"Say what?"

"You can't tell anyone. Not even Ruby."

"Can't promise that, not if it involves her. But I will tell you that I keep secrets really good, and especially for my friends. No talking about it with anybody but you and Ruby. That good enough?" Yang looked at Weiss, giving her what she thought was an endearing smile.

"That… is sufficient. Fine. This morning, your sister asked me to meet her on the roof of our dorm. Once there, she… confessed her feelings for me." Weiss flinched, anticipating Yang's reaction as she often anticipated her father's reaction to one failing or another.

Instead, Yang was overjoyed. "That's awesome! I mean, I was starting to think Ruby had all the romance of a rock, but you two are gonna be awesome together." Then Yang's brain kicked in again. "But why's she crying and you're miserable?"

"I turned her down, told her I can't return her feelings."

"But why?" Now Yang was really confused. "I mean, I've seen you giving her a look a few times, when you thought nobody was looking, so I was kind worried. But if it's mutual, I got no problems with it, so don't worry about me. What, are you already married or something?"

"Hardly."

"Engaged? Dating some else in secret?'

"No and no."

"Not into girls? I mean, it's okay whichever way you roll, but just, I dunno, tell Ruby that's why."

"That's not it at all. I… can't return her feelings because of my father."

"What's his problem?"

Gently, Weiss reached up and lifted Yang's arm off her shoulder. "My father has very distinct views on same-sex relationships. Of those who come to work for the Schnee Dust Company, ninety percent of those who are already in or become involved in a same-sex relationship are gone within five years. Very, very few make it to ten, despite the official company policy against discrimination on any such basis."

Yang whistled. "I don't know much about business, but that seems high.

"It's ridiculously high. And I need my father's support to finish my training. So I can't afford to jeopardize that by returning your sister's interest, even if I wanted to."

"But you _do_ want to."

"No, I don't."

"Bullshit." The word spat from Yang's lips like an indictment. "Like I said, I've been watching how you look at Ruby for a while. No matter how clueless she was, you were there for Ruby, supporting her. So maybe there could be something between you."

"Yang, I can't, my father-"

"-isn't here. Ruby is. Talk to her. Maybe you can work it out. But at the very least," Yang hugged Weiss close, "you owe one of the best friends you have in the world an explanation. And hey, if you need somebody to cry at later tonight, well, Ruby's got first dibs, after that I"m yours."

"I suppose I do owe her at least an explanation."

"That's the spirit."


End file.
